Travels of a Female Physician in the Ming Dynasty

The Third Prince’s Mansion… These four words were like a bomb that exploded in my mind in an instant.

I stood at the door in a daze, my hand still on the door frame, thinking rapidly in my mind: Someone has come from the Third Prince's Mansion, could something have happened to the Third Prince again?

But his illness...it shouldn't be like this. Logically, the medicine I prescribed for him should be able to stabilize his condition for a while.

"Xiao Yang! Xiao Yang, why are you still standing there?" Zhu Yuan poked his head out from behind me, his eyes wide as copper bells. "Everyone from the Third Prince's Mansion is here, why don't you hurry up!"

"Oh, right, right." I suddenly came to my senses, quickly straightened my robe, and said calmly, "Let them in."

The young eunuch nodded, turned and ran out.

I took a deep breath, but my heart was beating fast: Someone from the Third Prince's Mansion suddenly came to visit me late at night, something must have happened.

But the problem is, the Third Prince is the son of Concubine De, and I am currently fighting fiercely with Concubine De. Will this back and forth really drag me into a bigger vortex?

Soon, a young man wearing the uniform of the Third Prince's guard walked in. His face was solemn, and it was obvious that he was also a man who was doing something big.

As soon as he saw me, he immediately bowed respectfully and said, "President Yang, I am here on the orders of the Third Prince to invite you to come to the Third Prince's residence tonight."

"Tonight?" I raised an eyebrow, my heart skipping a beat. "Did something happen to the Third Prince?"

The guard's expression changed slightly, and he whispered, "The Third Prince's condition has suddenly worsened, and the palace physician is helpless. We have no choice but to ask you to come over quickly."

"What? The condition worsens?" I was surprised and couldn't react for a while.

Logically speaking, the third prince's condition should be stable, so why did it suddenly worsen?

Zhu Yuan was startled when he heard this and immediately grabbed my sleeve, "Yang Yuanpan, you have to be careful! The Third Prince is the beloved daughter of the Empress Defei. Our relationship with the Empress Defei is strained right now. If anything happens to the Third Prince, she won't let us off!"

I was also feeling very nervous. To be honest, it is indeed dangerous to have anything to do with the Third Prince now.

But right now, Concubine De is indeed unfathomable. If I refuse to go, she might find a handle to accuse me of deliberately not saving her son.

After thinking for a moment, I gritted my teeth and decided to go.

"Okay, I'll go to the Third Prince's Mansion right now." I said to the guard.

The guard's face showed gratitude, and he quickly bowed and said, "Thank you, Judge Yang. The carriage is ready, please follow me back to the palace."

The carriage sped along in the moonlight, and the lanterns on both sides of the street swayed in the wind.

I sat in the carriage, feeling somewhat uneasy. The sudden worsening of the Third Prince's condition was definitely not a good sign.

Could it be that there was something wrong with the previous prescription? Or... was someone interfering?

"President Yang..." Zhu Yuan sat next to me, his face pale. It was obvious that he was also very nervous. "Are we being used as scapegoats this time? I have a feeling that this matter has a sinister aura."

"Don't worry, there will always be a way when you reach the mountain." I patted his shoulder. Although I said it lightly, I was not sure in my heart.

I have already seen the methods of Concubine De. If anything happens to the Third Prince, she will definitely put the blame on me.

Zhu Yuan scratched his head and muttered, "I hope the Third Prince just has an upset stomach and nothing serious..."

Soon, the carriage stopped in front of the Third Prince's mansion.

Zhu Yuan and I got out of the car. The guards led the way and took us straight into the third prince's bedroom.

As soon as I entered the room, I smelled a strong smell of medicine. The third prince was lying on the bed, his face as pale as paper, and his forehead was covered with cold sweat.

Several imperial doctors gathered around the bed, all with serious expressions, but apparently helpless.

"Third Prince, this is..." I quickly walked to the bedside and reached out to feel his pulse.

The pulse is disordered and the breathing is weak. It doesn't seem like a simple worsening of the disease, but rather like poisoning.

I was shocked and asked quickly, "Has the Third Prince taken any new medicine or eaten anything special recently?"

The steward beside him hurried over, his face grim. "Yang Yuanpan, the Third Prince hasn't taken any new medications recently, and his diet has been prepared according to his usual diet. But this morning he suddenly started to have chills and fever, and the imperial physicians have used various prescriptions, but none of them worked."

Zhu Yuan muttered beside him, "This is really weird. Did he hit something..."

I glared at him and signaled him to shut up.

"Yang Yuanpan, how is the Third Prince doing?" An elderly imperial physician approached, looking anxious. "We've tried several prescriptions, but none have been able to stabilize the Third Prince's condition. Now we can only rely on you."

I nodded, but I felt a little uneasy.

The Third Prince's pulse is a little strange, as if he has been poisoned by a chronic poison, but I can't be sure what kind of poison it is for the time being.

"Don't be impatient." I took out a silver needle from my sleeve and carefully pricked the third prince's wrist to observe his reaction.

As the silver needle pierced his skin, the Third Prince's arm suddenly twitched violently and he let out a low groan.

My heart tightened and I quickly pulled out the needle.

Sure enough, there was already a toxin in the Third Prince's body.

Although this poison is not fatal, it will gradually weaken the body's resistance and eventually make people extremely weak.

The problem is that the poison is extremely concealed. If I hadn't diagnosed it carefully, it would have been difficult to detect.

"President Yang, how's the situation?" The housekeeper looked at me expectantly.

I pondered for a moment, and finally decided to tell the truth: "The Third Prince's condition is not getting worse, but he has been poisoned by a chronic poison."

"What?!" The housekeeper and several imperial doctors widened their eyes at the same time, obviously not expecting it to be poisoning.

Zhu Yuan was so frightened that he almost jumped up: "Poisoned?! Then... who poisoned it?"

"I can't confirm it yet." I frowned. "But this poison is extremely subtle. It should have slowly seeped into the body through long-term contact with certain foods or medicines."

The butler's face turned pale. "How...how is this possible? The Third Prince's diet has always been supervised by us personally, there will never be any problems!"

I sighed. "It's difficult to detect precisely because the poison is so hidden. Fortunately, it was discovered early, and the poison hasn't spread completely yet. I'll prepare an antidote as soon as possible."

The housekeeper nodded quickly: "Thank you, Dean Yang, for the verdict. The Third Prince's life depends on you."

I returned to my study and began to look through medical books, searching for a prescription for detoxification.

Zhu Yuan sat next to me, teacup in hand, his face filled with anxiety. "Yang Yuanpan, how did the Third Prince get poisoned? Who in this palace, outside of it, would dare to poison the prince?"

As I flipped through the book, I said, "The person who could poison the Third Prince's residence must be someone very close to him. Moreover, this kind of poison must be administered over a long period of time in order for the toxin to slowly accumulate."

"Isn't that..." Zhu Yuan's eyes widened, and his voice was very low, "Isn't that Consort De? She is the biological mother of the Third Prince!"

I shook my head. "I'm not sure it's her. But Consort De is definitely the most suspicious person. She has her own influence in the court. If she feels that the Third Prince is no longer useful to her, she might take a risk."

"It's so terrible..." Zhu Yuan muttered, his face full of horror.

"Don't let your imagination run wild. Let's first detoxify the Third Prince." I searched for a while and finally found a suitable detoxification recipe.

"Zhu Yuan, go to the warehouse and gather all these herbs." I handed him a piece of paper and reminded him, "Remember to hurry. The Third Prince's condition cannot be delayed."

Zhu Yuan took the note and ran out quickly.

The next morning, I brought the prepared antidote to the third prince's bedroom.

The Third Prince remained unconscious, his face pale. I handed the bowl of medicine to the butler and instructed, "Feed him slowly. Repeat every four hours for three days. This should clear the toxins from his body."

The housekeeper quickly took the medicine bowl and said gratefully, "Thank you, Court Judge Yang. If the Third Prince can recover, you will be our great benefactor!"

I smiled and waved my hand: "You're welcome, saving people is my duty."

After saying that, I turned around and prepared to leave.

Now that the Third Prince's poison has been cured, it's time for me to return to the Imperial Hospital to continue dealing with Doctor Li's matter.

However, just as he reached the door, he suddenly heard hurried footsteps behind him.

"President Yang, wait!"

I turned around and saw the butler running towards me, breathless and looking a little uneasy. "Yang Yuanpan, we just found something that may be related to the Third Prince's poisoning."

"Oh? What is that?" I raised my eyebrows and immediately became alert.

The butler pulled a small porcelain bottle from his sleeve and handed it to me. "This is what we found in the Third Prince's medicine box. It seems to be some kind of medicinal powder, but we dare not handle it without permission, so please take a look."

I took the porcelain bottle, opened it and saw some fine white powder inside with a pungent smell.

This is obviously not an ordinary medicinal herb, but more like an ingredient of a chronic poison.

"There is indeed a problem." My face darkened and my fingers holding the porcelain bottle tightened slightly.

This bottle of powder is most likely the culprit that caused the third prince to be poisoned.

"Is this medicine powder...what the Third Prince takes on a daily basis?" I asked.

The butler shook his head. "No...I don't know. The Third Prince's medicines were all prepared personally by the imperial physicians, and no new medicines have been added recently."

I suddenly felt a chill in my heart.

The appearance of this bottle of powder means that someone is secretly poisoning the Third Prince's mansion, and this person is most likely hiding among the Third Prince's closest people.

After leaving the Third Prince's Mansion, my mood became extremely heavy.

The poisoning of the third prince was definitely not an accident. There must be a bigger conspiracy behind it.

And Empress Defei...which side of this conspiracy is she on?

I was walking on the way back to the Imperial Hospital, feeling mixed emotions, and everything that happened last night kept flashing through my mind.

Just as I was lost in thought, Zhu Yuan suddenly caught up with me from behind, shouting breathlessly, "President Yang! President Yang! There's news from Yuanbao!"